I hate P2W/Grindy/Rigged/Gambling/Woke/Unoptimized/Buggy games and "Live Service"/Online-Only games.

I also use Linux, so Linux compatibility is a requirement (and no, I will not use Windows 11).

https://stopkillinggames.com





Pay To Win = Anything that can be bought with real money that gives a player a statistical advantage over another player who plays less (or for free in F2P games) in any way, is pay to win.



This includes, but is not limited to:


- Consumables/Power-Ups[*]Buffed up "Overpowered" Items.
(Guns that deal extra damage, etc.)


- Paid progression
(To skip grind, get immediate unlocks, etc.)
This includes the ability to buy resources or unlocks (especially in PVP games, or in PVE games where the difficulty does not scale fairly/properly.)
Grind in itself is often a P2W mechanic designed to force you to pay if you don't want to/or can't play a lot.


- Boosters
(XP and Currency Boosters, etc.)
This ties in with "Paid Progression".


- Rigged Matchmaking Schemes
For example: Even cosmetics, aren't strictly cosmetic anymore... as companies rig matchmaking behind the scenes. (Which is becoming more common as companies rig matchmaking.)
Research EOMM matchmaking, or rigged matchmaking and you may be surprised at what you find.

TBH, most modern games do NOT use SBMM; but rather EOMM is used instead!

SBMM is strictly about making fair matches, where as EOMM is all about driving "engagement", which refers to how long you play and how much you spend! Bear in mind that quitters don't become spenders, so a free "win" every once in a while is necessary to avoid players claiming their game as P2W and quitting (negatively affecting "churn" - which is the rate of players quitting).

(Below are links to various documents/patents that show the greedy intent of game companies.)

EOMM - An Engagement Optimized Matchmaking Framework
https://web.cs.ucla.edu/~yzsun/papers/WWW17Chen_EOMM

US20160005270A1 - System and method for driving microtransactions in multiplayer video games
https://patents.google.com/patent/US20160005270A1/en

US20190091581A1 - Methods and Systems for Improved Player Matching in Multiplayer Gaming Environments
https://patents.google.com/patent/US20190091581A1/en

US8425330B1 - Dynamic battle session matchmaking in a multiplayer game
https://patents.google.com/patent/US8425330

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/334489308_Unfair_play_Video_games_as_exploitative_monetized_services_An_examination_of_game_patents_from_a_consumer_protection_perspective


- Larger inventories.
(Especially if the free inventory is rather small. Being able to access more gear/loot; as well as buy/sell/trade such loot is an advantage.)


- Battle Passes/"Limited Time Events"
(As they often combine the above methods.)
FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) is a manipulative tactic, and often used to pressure you into buying P2W/Gambling items.


- DLCs that may contain such items like listed above.
Expansion packs with new maps, game modes, etc. are one thing (and generally fine, as long as they're not used as a means to upsell content that should of been included in the base game)... but having functional gear locked behind DLC is P2W!


- Having multiple editions.
(Where buying a more expensive edition grants immediate unlocks and/or items that aren't strictly cosmetic. This often ties into the above stuff.)


- Having Early Access items that aren't strictly cosmetic/out-of-game items such as: soundtracks, posters, etc.
(Again, this ties in with the OP Items/DLC/Paid Progression/etc. stuff above. The only thing different is, you paid for early access to be able to access such items.)